The Teacher Who changed My Life
Mentor
A wise trusted counselor or teacher
Characterization
In literature refers the step by step process wherein an author introduces and then describes a character. The character can be described directly by the author or indirectly through the actions, thoughts, and speech of the character.
He vowed, he would go back to Greece, find out the details of his mother's death and write about her life, so her grandchildren would know of her courage.
Once Nicholas understood the power of word. What did he vow to himself ?
That he's very proud of him.
When the Worcester paper ran a picture of me standing next to President Kennedy, my father rushed out to buy a new suit in order to be properly dressed to receive the congratulations of the Worcester Greeks. He clipped out the photograph, had it laminated in plastic and carried it in his breast pocket for the rest of his life to show everyone he met. What does the father's actions tell you about his feelings for his son ?
Worcester, Mass
Where did Nicholas and his family live?
Boston Univeristy
Where did Nicholas go to college ?
Greendale Elementary School
Where did he attend school?
Miss Hurd also submitted the essay to a contest sponsored by the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge, Pa., and it won a medal.
Where else did Ms. Hurd submit his story to and what was the outcome ?
His dad.
Which one of Nicholas's family members lived in the United States ?
Miss Hurd
Who accompanied Nicholas's father when he graduated, when Nick got married, and at the baptism of Nick's 3 children?
She sent them, so they could have freedom.
Why did Nicholas's mother send him and siblings to the United States?
Their father was not leading the line while balancing a glass of wine in his head, while he danced like he always did.
Why did Nick and his sisters feeling a aching void on his 50th birthday when the dancers led the serpentine line?
It made him feel sad because it reminded him of the last time he aw his mother.
Why did the coming of Spring every year make Nick sad?
They were put in the class for the mentally retarded because there was no facility for non-speaking English children.
Why was Nicholas and his sisters put in the classes for the mentally retarded?
It was used because that is what foreigners would informally call an American.
Why was the term "Yankee" used when referring to Americans in the story ?
Emphatically
With strong emphasis
She called him to tell him that she wants him to do the eulogy at her funeral, but instead he wrote a story about how she changed his life instead.
What did Miss Hurd call Nick for? What did he do instead of doing what she wanted him to do?
She published it in the school's newspaper
What did Ms. Hurd do with Nicholas's essay?
She told Nick I want you to write about what happened to your family in Greece.
What did Ms. Hurd tell Nicholas to write about for the class paper?
He attended Chandler Junior High . He was 13 years old.
What school did he attend for junior high? How old was he when he and his family moved the 2nd time ?
He secretly resented him for not getting the whole family out of Greece early enough to save his mother.
What was Nicholas's first impression of his father?
He got a part-time job at the Worcester Telegram and Gazette
What was Nicholas's first job?
He was mortified at first, but then he started to see that his classmates were responding to his story with sympathy.
What was Nicholas's reaction when he found out that Ms. Hurd published his essay in the school newspaper?
They asked about his strange clothes and heavy accent.
What were questions he was often asked by the students while attending Chandler Junior High ?
He didn't want to do it because he knew it would be hard for him to do so.m
How did Nick feel about giving the eulogy at Miss Hurd's funeral ?
He was 9 years old.
How old was Nicholas when he and his 3 sisters fled Greece ?
He became the editor of the school newspaper at Classical High School
Did Nicholas take on any newspaper roles in high school and if so what was his roll?
She was shot and tortured by communist guerrillas.She died so that her children could go to their father in the United States.
How and why did Nicholas's mother Eleni Gatzoyiannis die ?
A formidable, solidly built woman with salt-and-pepper hair, a steely eye and a flat Boston accent. She didn't have time for goof-offs.
How did Nicholas describe Ms. Hurd
He followed the prettiest girl in his class to a door marked "Newspaper Club".
How did Nicholas get involved in the Newspaper Club?
Catalyst
Something or someone that brings about change
He asked can he place him in Ms. Hurd's English class.
Since Nicholas took a liking to Ms. Hurd what did he ask of his principal?
Tact
The understanding of the proper things to do or say around others.
Isolated
To be separated from others
